NATIONAL FEBRUARY 2013

NATIONAL FEBRUARY 2013

• Rajya Sabha on 25 February 2013 approved the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Bill. The Bill was passed by Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament in September 2012.The bill seeks protection for women in all type of organized, unorganized as well as Private Sectors, including the sexual harassment of domestic help as well as agricultural workers. The bill had made it mandatory for every organization with 10 or more employees to form an internal complaint committee to deal with the complaints of sexual offences. The committees should be disposed of within 90 days and organizations that fails to follow the guidelines, would be penalized with 50000 rupees. Organizations that repeatedly violate the provisions of the bill would be penalized to a greater level and the offence may lead to the cancellation of the licenses or registration of the business conduct. Under its list of offences, the bill covers sexual remarks, sexual favour demands, any act of unwelcome touch and physical advance and showing pornography.
  
• In the backdrop of incidences of violence against women which challenges liberal and progressive credentials of our country, the Finance Minister P. Chidambaram pledged to do everything possible to empower women and to keep them safe and secure. Presenting the Budget 2013-14 in the Lok Sabha on 28 February, the Finance Minister proposed to set-up Nirbhaya Fund. Citing the multifarious role a woman plays as a child, a young student, sportswoman, homemaker, working woman and the mother who needs their support, the Minister announced that the Government will contribute Rs. 1,000/- crores in this Fund. Chidambaram said that Ministry of Women and Child Development and other ministries concerned will work out the details of the structure, scope and the application of the Fund.
  
• The Government of India on 27 February 2013 announced constitution of Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe into the allegations in the VVIP helicopter deal from Agusta Westland and to identify the role of the middlemen in the purchase of the 12 helicopters. The motion was moved by the Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath. The proposed JPC will constitute of 20 members from Lok Sabha and 10 from Rajya Sabha and submit the report of its findings within three months from the day of its constitution. Joint Parliamentary Committee is an ad hoc Parliamentary Committee that is constituted by the Indian parliament. The JPC is constituted only after a motion is adopted in one house of the Parliament and accepted by the other house. The strength of JPC can be different every time it is constituted but the number of members from the Lok Sabha is always double to the members from Rajya Sabha in the committee formed.
  
• Delhi Became the First State in India to Ban the Manual Scavenging
  Delhi became the first state in India to ban the manual scavenging. The Chief Minister of Delhi on 26 February 2013 banned deployment of the cleaning staff for the purpose of manual sewer cleaning. At the Swabhiman Diwas celebrations on 26 February 2013, the CM announced that the Delhi government was facilitating the amenities to the cleaning staff according to the service rules. The Delhi government was also taking initiatives for modernising the working mechanism for them and facilitating appropriate training to them. In the meanwhile, it was also declared that all the civic bodies of Delhi would be asked to regularise services of the cleaning staff that was working for several years on contractual basis. 
  
• The Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs Mullapally Ramachandran in Lok Sabha on 26 February gave the information that the Government has approved a Scheme to create National Population Register (NPR) and issue Resident Identity Cards to all usual residents of age 18 years and above in 3331 coastal villages in 13 maritime States/ Union Territories namely, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal, Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Puducherry as one of the measures for strengthening coastal security. All the towns in Andaman and Nicobar Islands have also been covered. An amount of Rs. 216.31 crore has been approved by the government for creation of NPR in these coastal villages and issue of resident identity cards. The data collection has already been completed in these areas. The demographic data has been collected for 1.2 crore people and biometrics (photograph and ten finger-prints) for 67.3 lakh people. The Resident Identity Cards have been dispatched directly to the residents by Department of Post through a secure Speed Post. As on date, more than 48.06 lakh cards have been dispatched. 
  
• The Government in order to give the Community Radio movement a fresh impetus would be providing Rs.100 crores in the XII Plan. During the Plan period, it was proposed to set up 500 new Community Radio Stations (CRS) also. This was stated by Manish Tewari, Minister for Information & Broadcasting, while delivering the valedictory address at the 3rd National Community Radio Sammelan in New Delhi on 11 february. Tewari further stated that the Ministry had identified key benchmarks for the Plan period whereby a roadmap would be prepared to provide assistance for operating Community Radio Stations. Elaborating on the proposal of the Plan fund, the minister said Rs.90 crores had been proposed for providing financial support, while Rs.10 crore was being proposed for training, capacity building and awareness activities of Community Radio Stations. 
  
• The two-day International Conference on Traditional Medicine for South-East Asian Countries concluded with the Adoption of Delhi Declaration in New Delhi on 13 February. The Health Ministers of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Minister of Indigenous Medicine of Sri Lanka, Regional Director General of WHO SEARO, representatives from SEAR countries, experts from different parts of the world including officers of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare attended the valedictory function. In his concluding remark, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare acknowledged the collaboration and assistance of WHO - South East Asia Regional Office and WHO for the conference. He said we have a useful set of recommendations from the four panel groups on the strategic themes now. All member countries of South East Asia will remain committed to steer the implementation of the identified activities henceforth. We have made a joint Declaration from the historical city of Delhi to strengthen the future of traditional medicine for the welfare of human health. The spirit behind Delhi Declaration is to foster development of traditional medicine across the region. Regarding the institutional mechanisms for information sharing and capacity building in traditional medicine, Azad said the Delhi Declaration has indicated the need to examine the setting up of regional centres. He offered hosting a Regional Traditional Medicine Centre in India with everyone’s cooperation and collaboration. We will be able to nurture the Centre and develop it as a Centre of Excellence in the days to come, he added. 
  
• The Ministry of Defence has initiated action for cancellation of contract for procurement of 12 AW101 helicopters for the use of VVIPs. MoD on 15 February, issued a formal show cause notice to the AgustaWestland of UK seeking cancellation of contract and taking other actions as per the terms of the contract and the Integrity Pact. MoD had already put on hold further payments to the company on 13 February. With the show cause notice, the operation of the contract has been put on hold. The company has been asked to reply to the notice in seven days.
  
• The Supreme Court (SC) of India on 15 February 2013 directed the telecom companies that failed to win bidding in the fresh 2G Spectrum Auction or didn’t participated into it to cease their operations immediately. The fresh auction took place after the licenses issued earlier were scrapped by the Court. 
  
• The Supreme Court also cleared that the Court would soon order the companies, which were successful in winning their biddings in the actions those were held on 12 November and 14 November 2012 to start operations in their respective circles immediately. The Supreme Court bench of two Judges that comprised justices G S Singhvi and K S Radhakrishnan directed the telecom companies whose licenses were scrapped on 2 February 2012 but allowed to function were supposed to pay back the reserved price fixed for the licenses during the first round of November 2012 auction.
  
• Stampede took place at the Allahabad railway station on 10 February 2013. On 11 February 2013, the death toll reached to 36 people. The death toll is likely to increase. The injured were being treated at SRN hospital in Allahabad and railway hospitals. The stampede took place at Platform number 5 and 6 where a number of passengers, most of which were Maha Kumbh devotees, were returning after they took dip in the Holy Sangam on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya. The government of Uttar Pradesh ordered inquiry into this matter. The government also asked Railways to sanction ex- gratia of 5 lakh Rupees to families of deceased. Following the stampede that tolled 36 lives, Mohammad Azam Khan, the UP minister resigned as an in- charge of ongoing Kumbh Mela, owing to the moral responsibility.
  
• 'Operation Three Star' was the code name of the entire top secret plan in which Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist Afzal Guru was hanged in the high- security Tihar Jail on 10 February morning. The operation had started on February 4, a day after President Pranab Mukherjee rejected the mercy petition of the Parliament attack convict paving the way for his execution. Government sources said that a handful of top officials in the Home Ministry and Tihar prison were aware of the operation which was kept top secret considering its sensitive nature. Guru, a medical college dropout and resident of Sopore in north Kashmir, was executed at 8 am on 10 february and buried on the prison premises. 'X' was the code name of the operation in which Ajmal Kasab, the lone Pakistani gunman caught alive after the Mumbai terror attack, was hanged to death at Pune's Yerwada Central Jail on November 21.
  
• The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 11 February 2013 removed the public prosecutor AK Singh from the 2G Spectrum Case. The decision of removal came after the alleged public prosecutor was caught discussing the strategy of prosecution with one of the prime accused of the 2G Spectrum Allocation Case in a taped conversation. The 2G Spectrum Case is under trial in a Court of Special Judge at New Delhi and the court was informed about the alleged involvement if the Public Prosecutor by the CBI. AK Singh was the part of the 2G scam legal team of the CBI that was headed by the senior lawyer UU Lalit (the special public prosecutor in the case).The 2G Spectrum Scam of India is a scam that involved Government Officials, Political Leaders and Industrialists within its circumference. The Government officials and politicians were accused for their alleged involvement in undercharging the frequency allocation licenses to the mobile telephony companies, resulting in a total loss of about 176,645 crore rupees as valued by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).
  
• The Government in order to give the Community Radio movement a fresh impetus would be providing Rs.100 crores in the XII Plan. During the Plan period, it was proposed to set up 500 new Community Radio Stations (CRS) also. This was stated by Manish Tewari, Minister for Information & Broadcasting, while delivering the valedictory address at the 3rd National Community Radio Sammelan in New Delhi on 11 february. Tewari further stated that the Ministry had identified key benchmarks for the Plan period whereby a roadmap would be prepared to provide assistance for operating Community Radio Stations. Elaborating on the proposal of the Plan fund, the minister said Rs.90 crores had been proposed for providing financial support, while Rs.10 crore was being proposed for training, capacity building and awareness activities of Community Radio Stations. 
  
• The two-day International Conference on Traditional Medicine for South-East Asian Countries concluded with the Adoption of Delhi Declaration in New Delhi on 13 February. The Health Ministers of India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Minister of Indigenous Medicine of Sri Lanka, Regional Director General of WHO SEARO, representatives from SEAR countries, experts from different parts of the world including officers of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare attended the valedictory function. In his concluding remark, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Union Minister of Health & Family Welfare acknowledged the collaboration and assistance of WHO - South East Asia Regional Office and WHO for the conference. He said we have a useful set of recommendations from the four panel groups on the strategic themes now. All member countries of South East Asia will remain committed to steer the implementation of the identified activities henceforth. We have made a joint Declaration from the historical city of Delhi to strengthen the future of traditional medicine for the welfare of human health. The spirit behind Delhi Declaration is to foster development of traditional medicine across the region. Regarding the institutional mechanisms for information sharing and capacity building in traditional medicine, Azad said the Delhi Declaration has indicated the need to examine the setting up of regional centres. He offered hosting a Regional Traditional Medicine Centre in India with everyone’s cooperation and collaboration. We will be able to nurture the Centre and develop it as a Centre of Excellence in the days to come, he added. 
  
• The Ministry of Defence has initiated action for cancellation of contract for procurement of 12 AW101 helicopters for the use of VVIPs. MoD on 15 February, issued a formal show cause notice to the AgustaWestland of UK seeking cancellation of contract and taking other actions as per the terms of the contract and the Integrity Pact. MoD had already put on hold further payments to the company on 13 February. With the show cause notice, the operation of the contract has been put on hold. The company has been asked to reply to the notice in seven days.
  
• The Supreme Court (SC) of India on 15 February 2013 directed the telecom companies that failed to win bidding in the fresh 2G Spectrum Auction or didn’t participated into it to cease their operations immediately. The fresh auction took place after the licenses issued earlier were scrapped by the Court. 
  
• The Supreme Court also cleared that the Court would soon order the companies, which were successful in winning their biddings in the actions those were held on 12 November and 14 November 2012 to start operations in their respective circles immediately. The Supreme Court bench of two Judges that comprised justices G S Singhvi and K S Radhakrishnan directed the telecom companies whose licenses were scrapped on 2 February 2012 but allowed to function were supposed to pay back the reserved price fixed for the licenses during the first round of November 2012 auction.
  
• Stampede took place at the Allahabad railway station on 10 February 2013. On 11 February 2013, the death toll reached to 36 people. The death toll is likely to increase. The injured were being treated at SRN hospital in Allahabad and railway hospitals. The stampede took place at Platform number 5 and 6 where a number of passengers, most of which were Maha Kumbh devotees, were returning after they took dip in the Holy Sangam on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya. The government of Uttar Pradesh ordered inquiry into this matter. The government also asked Railways to sanction ex- gratia of 5 lakh Rupees to families of deceased. Following the stampede that tolled 36 lives, Mohammad Azam Khan, the UP minister resigned as an in- charge of ongoing Kumbh Mela, owing to the moral responsibility.
  
• 'Operation Three Star' was the code name of the entire top secret plan in which Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist Afzal Guru was hanged in the high- security Tihar Jail on 10 February morning. The operation had started on February 4, a day after President Pranab Mukherjee rejected the mercy petition of the Parliament attack convict paving the way for his execution. Government sources said that a handful of top officials in the Home Ministry and Tihar prison were aware of the operation which was kept top secret considering its sensitive nature. Guru, a medical college dropout and resident of Sopore in north Kashmir, was executed at 8 am on 10 february and buried on the prison premises. 'X' was the code name of the operation in which Ajmal Kasab, the lone Pakistani gunman caught alive after the Mumbai terror attack, was hanged to death at Pune's Yerwada Central Jail on November 21.
  
• The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 11 February 2013 removed the public prosecutor AK Singh from the 2G Spectrum Case. The decision of removal came after the alleged public prosecutor was caught discussing the strategy of prosecution with one of the prime accused of the 2G Spectrum Allocation Case in a taped conversation. The 2G Spectrum Case is under trial in a Court of Special Judge at New Delhi and the court was informed about the alleged involvement if the Public Prosecutor by the CBI. AK Singh was the part of the 2G scam legal team of the CBI that was headed by the senior lawyer UU Lalit (the special public prosecutor in the case).The 2G Spectrum Scam of India is a scam that involved Government Officials, Political Leaders and Industrialists within its circumference. The Government officials and politicians were accused for their alleged involvement in undercharging the frequency allocation licenses to the mobile telephony companies, resulting in a total loss of about 176,645 crore rupees as valued by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).
  
• Government on 5 February, has approved multi-connectivity in naxal affected districts under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, PMGSY. Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh told that States can prepare Detailed Project Reports, DPRs in two stages. The Centre will also consider including insurance premium for personnel of contractors on a 75:25 cost sharing basis with State governments. Out of the 52,000 habitations in the 82 naxal affected districts, 30,000 have been sanctioned, but only 19,000 habitations have been connected so far.
  
• HRD Minister Dr. M.M. Pallam Raju on 6 February opened in New Delhi, the international conference on community colleges. In his speech the Minister said that 200 community colleges will be started from the next academic session 2013. He said his ministry realizes the role of education in capacity building of youth. Pointing decline in quality of education, he said out of 30 lakh people are added every year only 1/4th of them worth giving jobs as per the industry requirement. He said there is shortage of skill people in critically areas including IT, because of mismatch between the outdated syllabus and the changing need of the industry. Stressing for more skill based education, Dr. Raju appealed to the educational institutions to make tailor made courses for industry. He advocated for flexibility to the education programmes. The Minister said industry, including business and service sector, would be associated at all levels viz., development of curriculum, training of trainers/teachers, supply of guest faculty, development/maintenance of laboratories workshops for ‘hands on’ practical training and evaluation so as to ensure employment of the learner. These Community Colleges would have short duration credit-based modules leveraging on the National Vocational Education Qualifications Framework (NVEQF) to facilitate mobility of learners into the employment sector and banking (accumulation) of credit leading to certificates, diplomas, etc.
  
• The US under secretary for public affairs Ms. Tara Sonenshine offered her country’s idea and experience in promotion of community schools. Pointing similarity of challenges between the developing countries and the developed nations in promoting education, she said they are global in nature. Ms. Sonenshine said that community colleges provide education and skill to half of the students in USA at under graduate level. The secretary for higher education Ashok Thakur said that 60 countries are participating in two days conference and as per the govt. priority vocational education will get top priority. There are about 100 foreign participants coming from USA, UK, Canada, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. 
  
• A new health initiative “Rashtriya Bal Swasthya Karyakram” was launched by Sonia Gandhi, Chairperson, UPA from Palghar, a Tribal Block in Thane district, Maharashtra on 6 February. The initiative is to provide comprehensive healthcare and improve the quality of life of children through early detection of birth defects, diseases, deficiencies, development delays including disability. Launching the programme, Smt. Gandhi said UPA Government is committed to achieve the objective of “Health for All” through accessible, affordable and equitable healthcare services. Government introduced Janani Suraksha Yojana in 2005 to encourage institutional deliveries by giving cash assistance to pregnant women as incentives. Building on the success of the JSY scheme, Janani Shishu Suraksha karyakram was launched in 2011 to eliminate out-of-pocket expenses for both pregnant women and sick neonates. Under this scheme, every pregnant woman is entitled to absolutely free delivery, including caesarean section, in public health institutions now. Besides the free ante-natal and post-natal check-ups, the scheme provides for free diagnostics, free medicines, free consumables, free food during hospital stay, free caesarean section and free blood, if required and free transport to health facility and drop back home. 
  
• In a top secret operation on 9 February morning, the 2001 Parliament attack case convict Mohammed Afzal Guru was hanged and buried inside the Tihar jail complex. With this ended the decade-long uncertainty over the execution of the surrendered militant from Sopore, Kashmir, as his mercy petition got caught up in a political slugfest between the Congress-led UPA government and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party. The Ministry of Home Affairs had rejected Guru’s petition in 2011 and forwarded it to Pratibha Patil, who was President at the time. Ms. Patil chose not to act, but when Mr. Mukherjee took over as President last year, he returned all pending mercy petitions, including that of Afzal Guru and Ajmal Kasab — the Mumbai terror attack case convict — for reconsideration after Mr. Shinde took over as Home Minister in August 2012. But before the Centre gave a go-ahead for the hanging, security across the country, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir, was beefed up to avert any backlash. The MHA also issued an advisory to all State governments to remain on high alert. Afzal Guru was convicted of playing a central role in the entire conspiracy leading to the attack on Parliament on December 13, 2001. He had been on death row for the past 10 years since he was first convicted and sentenced by a special court in December 2002, while his death penalty was upheld by the Supreme Court on August 4, 2005.
  
• In a major initiative to reach out to the people in the Social Media Space, the I&B Minister, Manish Tewari on 7 February, launched the ‘MyIndia Initiative-A Digital Volunteer Programme’. The initiative aims at disseminating the development messages across the Social Media platforms by registering citizens as volunteers in an effort to contribute positively towards nation building. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Tewari said that this initiative was a milestone as it would enable the Government to disseminate information to citizens specially the youth of the country. It was a programme rooted in the principles of participative governance leading to real time engagement through the Social Media tools. The Minister called upon the youth to be part of the Digital Volunteer Family that would enable the Government to have a personalised interaction with the citizens. Registration for the programme is now open at Ministry’s Blog inbministry.blospot.in. In yet another initiative to reach out to the people of India in shortest possible time, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has planned for the first time, a Live Twitter Conference on the eve of 3rd Community Radio Sammelan, on 8th February, 2013. This will be the first ever such conference by any Ministry of Government of India.
  
• Mani Majra a small town within the Union Territory of Chandigarh was known mainly for being a prosperous suburb. After the release of the international film “Zero Dark Thirty,” which was shot in Mani Majra, it has acquired the potential to attract international tourists keen to see where the film was shot. The film has received Five Oscar nominations. The Ministry of Tourism has launched an effort to popularise the town and inform potential visitors about how to get there. The Incredible India website has not only embedded a You Tube video that shows the majestic mediaeval Mani Majra Fort, but also shows glimpses of the town and shows the exact locations where the film was shot. The website also has a detailed map that shows how to reach Mani Majra by air, rail and road from Chandigarh as well as from the four major international airports of India. This is part of the Ministry’s efforts launched under K. Chiranjeevi, Minister of Tourism to promote every part of India that has any potential to attract international tourists. It may be recalled that the Ministry had recently launched a campaign to promote Puducherry and Munnar (Kerala) where the international film “Life of Pi” was shot and also hosted a major Tourism Mart at Guwahatiin January, to promote North-Eastern India for international tourism. The first success of the North-Eastern campaign has been the attention received in 14 international media outlets (print and electronic) by the hitherto little-known Pobitora Rhinoceros sanctuary near Guwahati. 
  
• The Hydro Projects worth 2500 MW across various states have been accorded clearance on 8 February, by the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of M/o Environment & Forest. The projects include Tawang-II H.E. Project (800 MW) in Arunachal Pradesh, Teesta-IV H.E. Project (520 MW) in Sikkim to be executed by NHPC Limited and Luhri H.E. Project (775 MW) in Himachal Pradesh to be executed by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVN) Limited. The National Board for Wild Life (NBWL) has accorded wild life clearance to Vishnugad Pipalkoti H.E. Project (444 MW) in Uttarakhand to be executed by THDC India Limited subject to clearance by the State Board of Wild Life. The clearance has been pending for a long time. The way is straight clear in tapping the hydro potential of the country to meet the country’s power needs. 
  
• The Centre on 25 January, has constituted three new High Courts in the northeast — Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura — taking the total number of High Courts in the country from 21 to 24. According to Law Ministry sources, the strength of judges in each High Court will be as follows: Tripura 4 (including the Chief Justice), and Meghalaya and Manipur: three each (including the Chief Justice). As per the recommendations of the Supreme Court collegium, Justice T. Meenakumari, judge of the Patna High Court, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, is being elevated as Chief Justice of Meghalaya. Justice Deepak Gupta, who hails from Himachal Pradesh, is being elevated as Chief Justice of Tripura, and Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, judge of the Chhattisgarh High Court, is being appointed CJ of Manipur.
  
• President of India Pranab Mukherjee Gave Assent to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013
  The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee on 3 February 2013 agreed to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 for sharpening the laws against sexual assault. The President mandated harsher punishment such as death penalty for the offenders in such cases where the victim either dies or lands into the vegetative state. The amended law would come into force almost immediately. 
  
• India accounts to 86 percent Oral Cancer Figure across the World
  Experts of National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW) in first week of February released a report on the harmful effects of gutka. It reported that 86 percent of the total oral cancer figure across the world accounted to India. A total of 75000 to 80000 new cases of cancer were diagnosed in India itself. In case of India the maximum number of cancer was a result of tobacco chewing, because Indians chew tobacco more than smoking. India consists of 14 percent smoking tobacco users and 26 percent chewing tobacco users. As per the report tobacco is responsible for creating 1.5 lakh cancer patients, 4.2 million heart diseases and 3.7 million lung diseases in India every year, making India an oral cancer capital. The statistics released by the Health Ministry 65 percent cancers in India are caused due to the use of tobacco. Other data released reveled that a third of the annual 5.6 million cancer deaths in India occurs due to the excessive use of tobacco. The rate of oral cancer reported in India is about twice the global average. In 2008 cancer was the cause of 7.6 million deaths worldwide. In case of men from South-East Asia Region, oral and lung cancers are the most prevalent ones and breast and cervical cancers are mainly found in women. The Government of India invests a sum of 300 billion rupees per year approximately on treatment of tobacco related illness via both private and public spending. It accounts to one-fourth of the total spending on health issues in the country. About 2500 persons die every day in India due to diseases related to tobacco. 
  
• Panel to Examine issues of Certification under Cinematograph Act 1952 Constituted
  The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting on 4 February 2013 constituted a panel for examining the issues of certification under Cinematographer Act 1952. Shri Mukul Mudgal, the retired Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court have been appointed the Chairman of the Panel. 
  The Committee would be referring following terms
  1. The committee would be responsible for reviewing the mandate and functioning of CBFC and recommend measures that includes constitutional changes for enabling CBFC to deal with contemporary requirements of certification with increased transparency/efficiency. The issues, inter alia, may include:
     1. The process of certification under the Act and Rules, including the mechanism followed by Examining and Revising Committees
     2. Categories of certification, existing and proposed, under the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2013
     3. Requirement of special categories of certification for the purposes of broadcasting on television channels and radio stations
  2. It will be responsible for reviewing the mandate and functioning of Film Certification Appellate Tribunal (FCAT) in order to make it a more efficacious appellate body
  3. It will be responsible towards examining the role of Central Government regarding sanctioning of cinematograph films for exhibition under Entry 60, List I of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India with reference to Entry 33, List II of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India
  4. The Committee will also be responsible for suggesting measures for carrying on more effective legal remedies and penal provisions in the Act, particularly with reference to making of the unlawful copies, camcording in cinema halls, interpolation/insertion of clips after certification and such similar issues
  5. It will be responsible for the issues that the Committee may find fit to deliberate upon